5th February 2025
Higher Education and Training Deputy Minister, Dr Mimmy Gondwe, has encouraged learners to look at the Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges for a valuable and feasible alternative for advancing their professions.
The Deputy Minister was speaking in the course of an oversight visit to the post-school education and teaching (PSET) institutions during the Western Cape this 7 days.
Gondwe explained the TVET colleges as important for job creation and youth skills development during the place.
The Deputy Minister visited the West Coast College Vredenburg Campus, as well as the Cape Peninsula {University of Technology (CPUT) Bellville Campus in Cape Town.
Gondwe's visits directed at evaluating the condition of readiness of greater education institutions across the nation, in advance on the 2025 academic year.
Throughout the visit at West Coast College, she inspired learners to just take pride in attaining artisan techniques as they provide great entrepreneurship opportunities.
"I'm very encouraged by what I'm seeing at TVET colleges, I believe they are the future of this country. TVETs are producing artisans with much needed skills [and] also offer opportunities for learners to acquire future skills, such as robotics, AI [Artificial intelligence], and coding," Gondwe said.
At the second part of the visit, students at CPUT expressed problems about student residences and other services. click here The Deputy Minister directed the establishment to work with the Student Representative Council (SRC), to speedily solve the discovered concerns.
The Deputy Minister’s visit to the Western Cape, follows her recent visit to higher education institutions in the Free State where she visited Goldfields TVET College and the Central University of Technology (CUT), at the Welkom campus.
Throughout the visits, the Deputy Minister continues to be accompanied by essential senior officials from Higher Education and Training, and the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS).
The Deputy Minister’s dedicated Help Desk has also formed part of the delegation, assisting with all higher education related queries on each visit.
The difficulty of funding and administrative issues confronted through the NSFAS was within the spotlight throughout the Free State leg from the visits.
"NSFAS needs to get its act together, in order to ensure that student allowances are paid on time with click here no delays. Delays cause serious challenges for learners; learners need allowances to eat and to buy hygiene products. This is important for their sense of wellbeing and dignity," Gondwe said.
Gondwe embarked on the state of readiness visits following a plan of action, announced by Higher Education and Training, Dr Nobuhle Nkabane at the special meeting of the Post Education and Training sector held in January 2025, to establish umfolozi tvet college the state of readiness for the 2025 academic year.
The Deputy Minister's oversight is website expected to continue tvet colleges open in other provinces, with North West higher education institutions being the next on the list.
– SAnews.gov.za